Toronto condo project that jeopardizes schoolyard sunshine opposed by residents, school board

[A photo of the proposed condo site in downtown Toronto by Nicki Ward that was posted on the Parents of Church St. Jr. Public School Facebook page.]

As kids get ready to head back to the classroom the country’s largest school board is fighting a downtown Toronto condo development that would put one of its schools in the shadows.

The Toronto District School Board has joined the city’s opposition to a 38-storey condo development planned for 411 Church Street. The tall building, set for the corner of Church and Wood streets in the Church-Wellesley Village, could mean the nearby Church Street Junior Public School would never see the sun, Coun. Kristyn Wong-Tam tells Yahoo Canada News.

“I’m really grateful that they sit in support of the city’s position to oppose the application and to bring the height of this building down,” Wong-Tam says of the school board’s shared opposition to the development, which she says if built would cast a shadow over the play area of the school.

The public school, which goes up to Grade 6, is at 100-per-cent capacity with 396 students and also houses a daycare that runs year round and makes use of the school’s playground. Wong-Tam says that the city registered its opposition to plans for a high-rise building on the site before the purchase of the land by Church/Wood Residences LP had even been completed. The city advised the purchaser that there could be no shadow over the play space, and that the building podium must be of a less-aggressive height that provided a better transition with the rest of Church Street.

“They were advised of this even before they closed their transaction,” Wong-Tam says. “Somehow they don’t listen to those suggestions.”

TDSB school board trustee Chris Moise pushed for the board to join the city in opposing the development, the Toronto Star reported. The city has countered with a proposal for a 25-storey building and built in a way that prevents shading the schoolyard.

“We know (sun) is important for the kids,” Moise told the Star. “It helps your mood, it helps you learn…. It’s good for cognitive growth.”

Moise and the TDSB were contacted for the story.

The motion to build a 45-storey mixed-use development (since lowered to 38 storeys) at 411 Church Street was initially heard by the Ontario Municipal Board on June 27. Then a two-day hearing on the condo’s approval was held beginning Aug. 22, OMB spokeswoman Karen Kotzen tells Yahoo Canada News.

A decision on the development will come in the coming months.

“In 80 per cent of OMB matters a decision issues within 60 days of the hearing,” Kotzen says.

The site of 411 Church Street is currently being used as a parking lot.

“I don’t have any confidence that the Ontario Municipal Board is going to side with the city or the TDSB,” Wong-Tam says. “We have been disappointed time and time again with OMB decisions along Church Street.”

The area has seen a number of condos and other high-rise developments go up in recent years, with the approvals for many of them being appealed to the OMB. A 37-storey condo development planned for 70 and 72 Carlton Street, near 411 Church, faced opposition but was ultimately approved by the OMB. The TDSB accepted a $1.5-million settlement from the developers in that case.

The City of Toronto isn’t opposed to high-rise or mid-rise developments, Wong-Tam says, and is increasingly moving towards densification where appropriate. But this development, as proposed, is an example of one that isn’t appropriate for the surrounding neighbourhood, she says.

“The city has a pretty strong track record of encouraging urbanization and we encourage density where density is appropriate,” Wong-Tam says. “But it’s not a constitutional right for a land owner to build any size tower that they choose without any concern for the impact on the community.”